Delivery-machine.



W. SUTCLIPFE & G. B. STILLMAN.

DELIVERY MAGHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.14,1912v Patented Oct. 29, 1912.

A TTOR/VEY STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM SUTCLIFIEE AND GEORGE B. STILLMAN, OE DEERFIELD, OHIO.

' DELIVERY-MAGHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 29, 1912.

Application filed February 14, 1912. Serial 170,677,576.

nism generally, and is especially adapted for storing and delivering in determined quantities, such articles as stoppers or crowns for receptacles of various kinds.

The present device is intended to cooperate with, and deliver crowns to, machines which apply such crowns to the receptacles, such machines being generally termed capping machines.

One object of the invention is to provide a structure having a dust proof and hence sanitary compartment wherein a large supply of crowns may be placed, the supply to be drawn on as occasion may require.

.A further object is to provide mechanism by which the crowns may be automatically delivered from the storage bin to the capping machine without being exposed to dust, dirt, or atmospheric contact, and without the necessity of being handled by the operator.

A further object is to so construct the de-- vice that there will be no waste or loss of crowns, and by the use of which a considerable saving of time in supplying crowns to the capping-machine will beefiected.

Other objects of the invention will be disclosed in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawing Wherein' Figure 1 is an elevational View of the invention, shown in operative relation with the hopper of a capping machine; 2 is a vertical sectional view, approximately through the center of thedevice; Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional View on the'line 33 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 4 is a detail View, partly insection, of a modification by which several,

capping machines may be simultaneously or selectively served from the same storage compartment.

1 Referring to the drawing by reference numerals, 10. designates a suitable casing which may be of any desired configuration, although cylindrical is the preferable for-m.

Arranged within this receptacle, and secured at a pointapproximately intermediate its t-uted by a false bottom 11 which, as shown in the drawings, is preferably formed as an inverted frustum of a cone, the apex being open. That part of the device within the casing 10 and above the false bottom 11 serves as a temporary storage receptacle or compartment which may be closed by a removable cover 12. Adapted to normally close the opening in the reduced end of the false bottom 11 is a substantially cone shaped plunger 13, the base of which is slightly larger in diameter than the restricted opening in the false bottom 11. The plunger is yieldingly held against the false bottom by means of a suitable resilient element such as the coiled spring 14 which at one end connects with the rod 15 projecting from the plunger, and at the other end has an eye or hook 16 which takes over a bar 17 passing transversely through the upper part of the casing 10.

At certain times the storage compartment isdesigned to be placed in communication with a conveying conduit 18 theoutlet terminus of which is adapted to open into a hopper 19 of any snitable capping machine.

Inasmuch as the capping machine forms no part of the present invention, the ameis not illustrated in the accompanying drawing. The upper or inlet end of the conduit-'18 is connected to or'jformed integrallywith the small end of a substantially frusto conical member or funnel '20, the upper edge .of

which is securedim nediately below and ad! point*of attachment ot the falsej acent the bottom 11 to the casing 10. The direction of inclination of the false bottom 11 and the funnel 20 is substantially the same, the false bottom being arranged within the funnel.

Projecting from the base of the plunger 13, in the direction of the conduit 18, is a pair of lugs 21 (one only appearing in the drawing) carryinga pivot 22 for a lever 23 ic gsi u rum a 2 in t a i g O, P n sub ially i l n w th the upper edge of the conduit 18- 'The free-end of the lever is provided with an operating cord 25 having a handle 26 attached thereto.

The funnel and conduit are provided with- Slots 27 a d e c s ng i h -a., t- 28 h ough which. the lever projects and in which it has mi d n a d do n movement.

Referring :to Fig; dot the drawing wherein a modified of conduit, is showmgl'i) represents the casing as in the other views;

ger and the opening in the false bottom are shown as being round, other forms of these parts may be adopted with equally good results, and in general the details of the in vention may be materially modified without departing from the spirit there-of;

Following is a description of the operation of the device shown in the drawing A quantity ofecrowns or other articles to be delivered are placed into the storage compartment. When it is desired to deliver any of the crowns to the capping machine, the lever 23, is depressed against the tension of the spring 14 whereby the plunger 13 is lowered, thusopening the lower end'of. the false bottom 11 and permitting the crowns to fall into the space below this lower end of the false' bottom and about the cone .shaped plunger. The plunger is then released, the spring 14' 'drawing the same upge wardly and by this action the base of the plunger which has theretofore been seated on the inlet end of the conduit 18 is raised from the conduit and the crowns are permitted'to pass through the conduit and into the hopper 19 for use with the capping machine. It will be understood that the quantity of crowns delivered by a given machine is dependent on the size of intermediate chamber between the false bottom and the conduit 18, as well as the distance to which the plunger may be depressed through the intermediary of the lever 23. The movement in either direction of the lever 23 is limited by the edges (upper and'lower) of the slots 27 and 28.

intense.

In the form shown in Fig. 4:, the flow of crowns to the various branch conduits may be regulated by suitably turning the butterfly valve 29.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a device of the character described the combination with a casing having an inclined false bottom arranged substantially intermediate its ends, of a conduit having a substantially funnel shaped upper portion arranged adjacent said false bottom, a chamber intermediate the lower end of said false bottom and the upper end of said conduit,

and means for admitting measured quantities of articles from said easing into said intermediate chamber.

2. In a device of the character described,

.the combination with a casing having a removable cover, of a false bottom in said casing said false bottom being an inverted frustum of a cone and having a constricted opening at its apex, a-cone shaped plunger with means whereby the base of said plunr is normally drawn against the apex of said false bot-tom, a conduithaving its upper portion formed substantially as a funnel inclined in the same direction as the inclination of the false bottom, a chamber'formed between the opening in said false bottom and the upper end of said conduit, and a leveg for depressing said plunger and .ad-

mitting articles from the casing through the opening into said-intermediate chamber. In testimony whereof we have affixed our signatures in presence of two witnesses,

WILLIAM SUTCLIFFE GEORGE E. STILLMAN.

Witnesses:

J. E. ROLLER, W. L. CARSON. 

